The Jump
Contents |
Host
Davina McCall (and Alex Brooker in 2014)
Co-hosts
Mentors: Graham Bell (skiing), Amy Williams (skeleton), Eddie 'The Eagle' Edwards (ski jump)
Cherry Healey (The Jump: On the Piste)
Broadcast
Twofour and GroupM Entertainment for Channel 4, 26 January 2014 to 12 March 2017 (28 episodes in 4 series)
The Jump: On the Piste: E4, 2 - 9 February 2015 (7 episodes in 1 series)
Synopsis
Celebrities competed in a series of winter sports events, under the tutelage of Graham Bell, Amy Williams, and Eddie 'The Eagle' Edwards over the course of a week. Each night two or more celebrities faced a live ski jump in order to keep their place in the competition.
As well as the titular ski jumping, the show demonstrated time-trial and parallel slalom, skeleton bobsleigh, full bobsleigh, speed skating, speed skiing, and ski-cross.
The series courted injury from the start, and will be remembered more for its massive sicklist. Almost half of the names would pull out on medical grounds, with Beth Tweddle and Tina Hobley suffering long-term injuries.
Nicky Clarke finds it's a long way down.The Jump changed in 2016 to go out once a week. It was no longer event television, but a normal series, and it felt less special.
The final series went out in spring 2017. Announcing that The Jump would be rested, Channel 4 came up with some bluster about not wanting to compete with the Winter Olympics. We reckon The Jump had simply run its course, and could come back in a few years with fresh ideas.
Champions
| 2014 | Joe McElderry |
| 2015 | Joey Essex |
| 2016 | Ben Cohen |
| 2017 | Spencer Matthews |
Participants
2014
- Steve Redgrave (ex-Olympic rower)
- Sinitta (singer)
- Amy Childs (ex-The Only Way is Essex person)
- Tara Palmer-Tomkinson (socialite)*
- Kimberly Wyatt (singer and Got to Dance judge)
- Anthea Turner (TV presenter)
- Darren Gough (former cricketer)
- Marcus Brigstocke (comedian)
- Nicky Clarke (hairdresser)
- Sam J. Jones (actor)**
- Henry Conway (party promoter)***
- Melinda Messenger (TV presenter)****
- Laura Hamilton (TV presenter)
- Ritchie Neville (singer with 5ive)
- Joe McElderry (former X Factor winner)
- Donal MacIntyre (investigative reporter)
* - Tara Palmer-Tomkinson decided to pull out of the programme shortly before it was due to air. She was replaced by TV presenter Laura Hamilton.
** - Sam J. Jones also left the series before it aired after picking up a shoulder injury. He was replaced by 5ive singer Ritchie Neville.
*** - Henry Conway competed in the first men's event, the giant slalom. However after suffering a broken bone in his hand after crashing during practice for the skeleton, he was forced to withdraw from the competition, He was replaced by Joe McElderry, who won a jump-off against Donal MacIntyre to win the right to join the competition.
**** - Melinda Messenger withdrew from the competition after suffering a concussion during an accident while training for the bobsleigh event. This left her unable to train sufficiently to safely compete. Her place was taken by final stand-by contestant Donal MacIntyre.
Steve Redgrave was injured while training for the ski-cross, competed in some events, but was withdrawn from the final on medical advice. Marcus Brigstocke fell during the ski-cross event, and could not take part in the elimination jump.
2015
- Sally Bercow (wife of the Speaker of the House of Commons)
- Jon-Allan Butterworth (paracyclist)
- Joey Essex (TOWIE person)
- JB Gill (JLS singer)
- Louise Hazel (heptathlete)
- Lady Victoria Hervey (socialite)
- Ola Jordan (Strictly professional)
- Heather Mills (entrepreneur)
- Steve-O (Jackass person)
- Dom Parker (from Gogglebox)
- Ashley Roberts (ex-Pussycat Doll)
- Stacey Solomon (ex-Queen of the Jungle)
- Louie Spence (dancer)
- Louise Thompson (Made in Chelsea person)
- Mike Tindall (ex-rugby player)
- Phil Tufnell (A Question of Sport captain)
- Chloe Madeley (celebrity daughter)*
- Jodie Kidd (television presenter)**
* Madeley replaced Ola Jordan, who sustained an injury in training.
** Kidd replaced Sally Bercow, who was also injured in training.
2016
- Rebecca Adlington (swimmer)
- James "Arg" Argent (from The Only Way is Essex)
- Tamara Beckwith (socialite)
- Dean Cain (from The New Adventures of Superman)
- Linford Christie (sprinter)
- Sarah Harding (one of Girls Aloud)
- Brian McFadden (performed with Westlife)
- Tina Hobley (of Holby City)
- Louisa Lytton (Strictly Come Dancing star)
- Sid Owen (sometime EastEnder)
- Beth Tweddle (gymnast)
- Mark-Francis Vandelli (of Made in Chelsea)
- Tom Parker (singer with The Wanted)*
- Heather Mills (The Jump contestant 2015)**
- Joe Swash (Hole in the Wall captain)***
- Ben Cohen (rugby international)***
* Parker replaced Hobley, who sustained an injury in training.
** Mills replaced Adlington, who was injured in competition.
*** Swash and Cohen replaced Tweddle and Vandelli, who had also been injured in training.
After the pool of reserve contestants was exhausted, Christie withdrew, and was replaced by the eliminated Argent. Harding and Mills also pulled out of the contest out of concern for their health.
2017
- Caprice Bourret (model)
- Lydia Bright (from The Only Way is Essex)
- Kadeena Cox (sprinter and cyclist)
- Mark Dolan (comedian)
- Robbie Fowler (footballer)
- Josie Gibson (Big Brother 2010 winner)
- Jade Jones (taekwondo)
- Spencer Matthews (from Made in Chelsea)
- Emma Parker-Bowles (celebrity daughter)
- Jason Robinson (rugby for England)
- Louis Smith (gymnast)
- Gareth Thomas (rugby for Wales)
- Vogue Williams (Mission Survive champion)
- Bradley Wiggins (cyclist)
- Amy Willerton (model)*
* Willerton replaced Williams, who was injured in training.
Before the final, Thomas withdrew for personal reasons, and was replaced by the eliminated Bright.
Trivia
The programme's working title was 'The Alpine Games'.
Filmed on location in Innsbruck, Austria, host city of the 1964 and 1976 Olympic Winter Games.
The catalogue of injuries meant that the first final was curtailed; originally set to last 90 minutes, it concluded after 65.
